Monsignor Peter O’Reilly, Vicar General of the Diocese of Clogher and Parish Priest of Enniskillen, has been included in the UK King’s Birthday Honours List and was awarded an OBE.
Dean Kenneth Hall of St Macartin’s Cathedral, Enniskillen, has also been included in the Honours List. The citation accompanying both awards reads: _For Services to Reconciliation and Peace Building in Enniskillen and County Fermanagh_.
An OBE is a significant recognition awarded in acknowledgement of distinguished service and substantial contribution in public, professional or community life.
The awards recognise many years of commitment by Monsignor O’Reilly and Dean Hall to fostering friendship, reconciliation and community life across Enniskillen and County Fermanagh.
Among the many initiatives associated with their work have been shared civic and church events, acts of remembrance and reconciliation, and occasions of national significance, including the visit of Queen Elizabeth II to Enniskillen in 2012 and the visit of President Michael D. Higgins in 2015.
Congratulating both Monsignor O’Reilly and Dean Hall, Bishop Larry Duffy, Roman Catholic Bishop of Clogher, has said that their recognition is well merited in the light of their shared commitment to the ongoing work of peace and reconciliation in the community. ‘As Christians, all of us are called to bear witness to the Gospel in our daily lives and to be beacons of peace in our troubled world. These two men, along with those whom they work with and encounter, are shining examples of that’, he said.
Monsignor O’Reilly and Dean Hall have said that they see the award as recognising not simply two individuals, but the efforts of many people who have worked over the years to strengthen relationships, goodwill and community life throughout Enniskillen and County Fermanagh.
